White House ramps up health push for September 23 – Republicans’ defunding dilemma – Clinton: ‘I was wrong’ on reform becoming more popular

DRIVING YOUR WEEK: AFTER MONTHS OFF, POTUS BACK ON REFORM BEAT - Obama will plug the Patients’ Bill of Rights with a Wednesday event, touting insurance reforms that come online this Thursday: an end to arbitrary rescissions, lifetime limits on coverage and pre-existing conditions for kids among them. This will be the President’s first reform-specific event since June 22, when he also spoke on the Patients’ Bill of Rights. Obama will also meet Wednesday with state insurance commissioners, a group key to reform’s implementation, a White House aide tells Pulse. The President’s remarks will precede hundreds of events on Thursday, PPACA’s six-month anniversary, organized by liberal groups including the Main Street Alliance, U.S. PIRG, Families USA, Health Care For America Now and The Young Invincibles.

--THE BACKDROP – With public support lagging, PPACA’s six-month anniversary offers the White House a crucial opportunity to tout the law’s frontloaded, very popular insurance reforms. The message has barely permeated so far: only 14 percent know the new reforms come online this month, a National Association of Insurance Commissioners poll found in early September. Get outside the Beltway, canvass some non-health wonks and something becomes abundantly clear: while the country really likes these new provisions, there’s little awareness that they are coming into effect.

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“I’ll spread my wings and I’ll learn how to Pulse. I’ll do what it takes until I reach the sky” (hat tip: Tina Peng)

SIREN: THE DEFUND DILEMMA – POLITICO’s Carrie Budoff Brown: “Experts – and even some Republicans – say a GOP-controlled Congress next year would struggle to erase nearly $1 trillion in health reform spending over 10 years with a flick of the pen. Key parts of the bill, like new Medicaid entitlements, would require freestanding legislation, not merely routine changes during the appropriations process. The only way the GOP can really deal a mortal blow is by taking back the White House in 2013, these Republicans say – but even then, the clock would be running out. It would be well into the four-year implementation of the law, and just a year away from major benefits kicking in.”

-- SPEAKING OF DEFUNDING: FIRST IN PULSE – DeFundIt, the conservative group advocating for the defunding of the health care law, is releasing a card today to "Dr. Obama" to mark the law's six-month anniversary. The group is collecting electronic signatures on the card through the end of the month. It reads, in part: "We knew you would hike our premiums, prevent Snooki from tanning, destroy our jobs, bend the cost curve upward, reduce our access to care and force us to change our health plans! You’ve accomplished everything we expected and more, you must be so proud of yourself! Hope your next six months as our doctor aren’t as destructive for America as the last six months." The art http://politi.co/arQH0aan

HAPPENING TODAY – Sebelius kicks off the six-month celebration this morning, speaking at the National Journal Group’s “Healthcare: A Six-Month Check Up” event today at 8:30 a.m. ...Nancy-Ann DeParle is in Maine touting the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, announcing that the state’s program will insure an additional 4,500 Mainers.

CLINTON: “I WAS WRONG” ON HEALTH CARE PREDICTION - The former President conceded Sunday explained why his prediction that health reform would become popular shortly after Obama signed the law has not panned out. On Meet the Press: “I was wrong about that for two reasons. First of all, the benefits of the bill are spread out over three or four years. It takes a long time to implement. And secondly, there has been an enormously and highly effective attack on it.” http://politi.co/dpK0dV

POPPING ONLINE: MACPAC - The new advisory group, which will serve a similar purpose for Medicaid and CHIP as MedPac does for Medicare, is now live with a website. Site www.macpac.gov

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ICYMI: VALUES VOTERS TOP HEALTH TALKERS

-- GINGRICH: SEBELIUS REPRESENTS ‘SOVIET TYRANNY’ – Gingrich thinks Sebelius’s letter instructing insurers not to blame premium hikes on the new health care law was so egregious she deserved to be forced out. “When Secretary Sebelius said the other day she would punish insurance companies who told the truth about Obamacare, she was behaving exactly in the spirit of the Soviet tyranny,” he said. “If she is going to represent left-wing thought police about Obamacare, she should be forced to resign by the new Congress.” http://politi.co/aJWXlE

--HUCKABEE likened requirements to cover people with pre-existing conditions to having to cover a homeowner's house even after it has burnt down. http://bit.ly/d6dEaR

FINANCE GOP MEMBERS WANT RATE HEARING – Republican members of the Finance Committee want Chairman Baucus to hold a hearing on insurance premium increases before the next recess. They want to hear from OCIIO's Jay Angoff and CMS's Richard Foster. The request stems from the recent WSJ piece on increases. The letter http://politi.co/bWEKJC

-- PULSE FACTS OF LIFE – The spate of hearing requests from Republicans in the House and Senate in recent weeks underscores just how often administration officials are going to be testifying on Capitol Hill if Republicans win control of either chamber next year.

PALLONE WANTS TO REVIEW RATES – Dems want to look into the increases, too, but aren't yet calling for hearings. They know what insurers will say if given access to a mic and don't seem to want to open that can of worms. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., chairman of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, said Friday that he wants his panel to "review" dramatic rate increases on long-term insurance policies.

PULSE POLITICS: TOOMEY ON THE ATTACK - The Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, newly-endorsed by the AMA, went up late last week with a spot blasting opponent, Rep. Joe Sestak, for supporting the health reform law. Script: “The new health care law puts the government between patients and their doctors. It’s a prescription for disaster.” Ad http://bit.ly/aL7TAL

HEARINGS THIS WEEK – Energy & Commerce's Health subcommittee has a Wednesday hearing on cutting waste and fraud in Medicare and Medicaid; the E&C Oversight subcommittee has a Wednesday hearing on the recent salmonella outbreak. Education and Labor committee examines legislation to protect student athletes from concussions on Thursday.

“National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Dr. David Blumenthal says there is a ‘raging debate’ in Washington over whether the development of electronic medical records should be driven by standards or competition.” http://bit.ly/936e4e

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal asked the state’s Department of Insurance to reconsider approvals of health insurance rate increases, some as high as 22 percent. http://bit.ly/bj0k8N

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Authors:

About The Author

Jennifer Haberkorn is a senior health care reporter for POLITICO Pro. She’s covered the Affordable Care Act since it was being debated in Congress in 2009. Since then, she has written about the law from Capitol Hill, the federal agencies, the courts and outside the Beltway.

Before arriving at POLITICO, Haberkorn covered Congress and local business news for The Washington Times. Her work has also appeared in Health Affairs and The New Republic.

Haberkorn is a graduate of Marquette University, where she majored in journalism and served as editor of The Marquette Tribune.

About The Author

Sarah Kliff is a health care reporter for POLITICO Pro. As a writer for POLITICO, she has covered how federal regulation, Congress and lobbying affect the implementation of health care reform. She previously co-authored Pulse, a daily health policy briefing.

Prior to joining POLITICO, Kliff was a staff writer at Newsweek, where she covered issues at the intersection of health and politics. She also covered the 2008 election, traveling with Joe Biden and contributing reports to multiple Newsweek cover stories. She has also written for National Geographic, St. Louis Magazine and Humanities magazine.

Kliff attended Washington University in St. Louis, where she was editor-in-chief of the campus newspaper, Student Life. She grew up in Seattle and Toronto, cities that have left her a big fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs and coffee.